Double Hit

Should he play this weekend, George O'Callaghan will become the first player to have represented both Yeovil Town and Tranmere Rovers.

Irish born O'Callaghan was signed by Tranmere manager Ronnie Moore last summer, though he only played a handful of games for the Prenton Park outfit, before personal problems saw O'Callaghan released after a long period away from the team.

After returning to Ireland, following his release by Tranmere, O'Callaghan signed for Dundalk United, and impressed enough to earn his third return to English football with Yeovil this summer.

O'Callaghan started his career in England with Port Vale, where he made his debut in 1998 and remained at the club for four years, making 41 appearances in the process.

In 2002, he returned to his native Ireland, signing for Cork City, where he was hugely influential and impressive over his five seasons with the club.

His form earned him a return move to England in 2007, when he joined Ipswich on January 1^st, but O'Callaghan struggled in the Championship, and after getting sent off on his debut for the Tractor Boys, he made just twelve more appearances for the club, before joining Brighton on loan the following August.

A year to the day after signing for Ipswich, O'Callaghan returned to Cork, where again he impressed, and that resulted in his free-transfer move to Tranmere Rovers in July 2008.

One To Watch: Dean Bowditch

Striker Dean Bowditch has recently signed a 12-month contract with Yeovil after a successful trial with the club during pre-season.

The 23-year old joins on a free-transfer from Ipswich Town, where he progressed through the clubs academy, and made his first team debut seven years ago.

However he failed to ever hold down a regular first team place with the Tractor Boys, as he made 82 appearances during his time with the club, although nearly 50 of them were as a substitute, and he scored just nine goals.

During his time at Ipswich though, Bowditch spent time on loan at a number of clubs, playing for Burnley, Brentford, Wycombe, Brighton (x2) and Northampton.

He gained plenty of experience of League's One and Two in this time, as well as playing in the Championship, but failed to score more than two goals in any of this loan spells.

However, it appears Bowditch has turned the corner after a successful pre-season.  His trial period at Yeovil has seen him score several goals, enough to earn him a contract with the club.

A pacey, blonde-haired striker, Bowditch will wear the number 14 shirt for Yeovil on Saturday, and is at his best when he tries to use his pace to get round the back of defences.

George O'Callaghan may face Rovers on Saturday

Around League One

All the sides kick off their season this weekend, with all 24 teams looking towards the new season with hope, ambition and expectation.

Despite the league only kicking off this weekend, there are still some big fixtures around, none more so than a Lancashire derby between Oldham and Stockport at Boundary Park, and at St. Mary's, where Southampton host last years play-off finalists, Millwall.

Charlton Athletic kick off their campaign with a tough home test against newly promoted Wycombe, whilst Leeds host another newly promoted team, Exeter.

Norwich City take on Colchester United at Carrow Road whilst Paul Ince's first game back in charge of the MK Dons is at home to Hartlepool United.

Team News

Despite the fact that a ball has still not been kicked in a competitive match, Tranmere Rovers already come into this game heavily hit by injury and suspension, with four players missing for the fixture.

Defender Ian Goodison and utility player Gareth Edds are both suspended, after being sent off towards the end of last season, though both could return in the League Cup against Grimsby on Tuesday.

Bas Savage is out until February with a heel injury, whilst midfielder Charlie Barnett only returned to training on Thursday after a back injury and is expected to miss out.

Jones' Prediction:  Yeovil Town 2-1 Tranmere Rovers

It is, as you'd expect, very difficult to predict an opening day fixture, as it is somewhat unknown what form each team is bringing into this fixture.

However, having seen Tranmere play several times over pre-season, it is clear to see they are struggling defensively, and as such they could ship several goals.

Rovers' back five (including the goalkeeper) has an average age of less than 20 and very little experience too it, especially with Ian Goodison missing, and they have certainly struggled to cope in pre-season, shipping goals against the likes of Cammell Laird, Morecambe and Liverpool.

Tranmere too have showed they can pass though, but often with no end product.  There will be an endless string of passes across the midfield or back four, but never does the ball go anywhere threatening.  In the final third they are lacking, or they have done over pre-season, and this, coupled with their defensive frailties, means you struggle to be able to see Tranmere winning.

Enjoy the season.